Bais HaVaad on the Parsha, Parshas Beshalach

Trivial Pursuits 

Excerpted and adapted from a shiur by HaRav Yitzchok Sorotzkin   

January 25, 2024

Hashem said to Moshe, “Behold—I shall rain down for you food from heaven; let the people go out and pick each day’s portion on its day, so that I can test them, whether they will follow My teaching or not.

Shmos 16:4

The Kli Yakar observes that people who have much more wealth than they require to live often don’t find time to study Torah, as they are too busy managing their assets, so Hashem tested Bnei Yisrael by giving them only as much man as they needed. If they would not invest their time and energy in Torah study despite having no distractions, it would indicate that they are not truly interested in Torah.

The Mishnah in Avos says that the way of Torah is to eat bread with salt, drink water, and live frugally, and one who does so will be happy in both olam hazeh and olam haba: Not only will a person who follows this practice merit the greatest reward in olam haba; he who lives simply will also be happier in this world.

A similar message can be inferred from the Gemara that declares that the entire world was sustained in the merit of R’ Chanina ben Dosa, but R’ Chanina himself was sustained by a kav of carob. The Ben Yehoyada explains that R’ Chanina was satisfied with his own meager portion, had no desire to live like others, and was satisfied with what he had. May we merit to focus our energies in this world mainly on spiritual pursuits, and thereby be zocheh to happiness both in this world and in the next.